Couple attacked for telling thugs to be quiet in theater

[DONT TREAD ON ME]

agreed. its over. nothing new is coming out of it at all.

[chasfm11]

My intent isn't to beat a dead horse but to go back to my point about the soldier's conduct almost being irrelevant.

http://www.theblaze.com/stories/destruc ... ukee-mall/

Unruly teens seem to need much of a reason to act. According to the second video clip and an interview with one of the members of the mob they were "just trying to have fun." I appears that the original catalyst was an alleged shoplifting incident.

[Ameer]

How do you like my personality now?

I for one didn't notice any difference.

[Oldgringo]

How do you like my personality now?

I for one didn't notice any difference.

Good eye!

[VMI77]

The reason for carrying is never knowing how/when or why you are going to end up in a life-threatening situation despite your misguided attempts at living a decent law-abiding life.
Telling a kid to "shush" shouldn't end up like this. Are you advocating that when we encounter kids like this in the theater we simply go ask for a refund and leave, thereby condoing the behavior?

I don't think that contacting management and asking for a refund is condoning the behavior. I do think that our society has decided that just about any other course of action is going to go against us, no matter how noble the intention and manner of delivery.

When teens get together as a group, the results can be unpredictable. Addressing a group of teens in any fashion is almost always seen by them as confrontational no matter how you do it. Add radical differences between the requester and the teens (and there are several combinations to choose from) and you are almost guaranteed a confrontation.

We've had two threads in the last couple of weeks where well intentioned folks attempted to address aberrant public behavior in a group and both situations escalated. Keeping in mind that my first goal is to protect myself and my family, I'll take these situations as a sign that my attempt to address similar public behavior in the future is likely to result in a similar escalation. In addition, I'm very concerned that if a violent confrontation occurred, the truth about what happened would never see the light of day since it would be many to one (or two) telling the story. The thread where the guy was attacked by two unarmed women and a boyfriend confirms that, too.

We have a choice of movie houses in our area. AMC, which is 30.06 posted and Tinseltown, which is not. I'd never think about going to the movie unarmed so AMC is not an option for me. That said, I don't go to the movies to attempt to cure the ills of society. If I'm going to be faced with an unruly mob (and that is the best description that I can come up with, based on my reading of the story), I'm going to hand the
situation over to others. I wouldn't hesitate to get theater management and/or LEOs involved but I'm not going to attempt it myself. If nothing else underscores the gravity of the potential situation, the fact that the teens in the article were willing to take on uniformed, armed LEOs should. Wasn't there a wise saying about the best way to win a gun fight was not to be there when it happened? If I'm forced into, that is one thing. If I have the option not to be there, I'm going to take it.

Based on other comments you've made in other threads I think you realize that this is exactly the kind of society the liberal anti-self-defense crowd is trying to cultivate. If this happened in one of our People's Republic states like Kalifornia or New Jersey, and the people attacked defended themselves, even if the truth saw the light of day, they'd be excoriated as thugs and the thugs would be lamented as victims. It might not happen that way here but the number of people who would automatically empathize with these young thugs is mind bogglingly large and growing. This attitude is no accident: it's the inevitable outcome of over three decades of liberal indoctrination in the schools and in the media, and short of a complete societal meltdown, won't be easily reversed --just look at the UK.

[VMI77]

I understand what y'all are saying, but giving up the movie theaters to the thugs doesn't sit well with me. Maybe it's our various levels of risk acceptance. (I do roadrace motorcycles, so...)

Not going to a movie theater infested with thugs is a choice not to spend money on a dangerous or inferior product. Continuing to spend money on such a product results in more of the same dangerous or inferior product. When only thugs are attending movie theaters the theaters will either fix their product or go out of business. If enough people stop spending money at movie theaters the theaters may decide that providing security preserves more of their revenue than putting up with thugs. The people making movies will shift their product to a different outlet --like they have already to a certain extent with DVDs-- or they will force the movie theaters to produce an environment that brings patrons back into the theaters if that revenue stream remains critical to their business. Continued patronage will keep them operating just the way they do now, unless you shift your spending to theaters that are taking measures to prevent unacceptable behavior and thuggery.

[Winchster]

Video of interview with the wife.

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[Beiruty]

someone flashed a gun?

[baldeagle]

Video of interview with the wife.

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Interesting. According to the reporter the teens backed off when a man helping the couple "flashed a gun".

[chasfm11]

Based on other comments you've made in other threads I think you realize that this is exactly the kind of society the liberal anti-self-defense crowd is trying to cultivate. If this happened in one of our People's Republic states like Kalifornia or New Jersey, and the people attacked defended themselves, even if the truth saw the light of day, they'd be excoriated as thugs and the thugs would be lamented as victims. It might not happen that way here but the number of people who would automatically empathize with these young thugs is mind bogglingly large and growing. This attitude is no accident: it's the inevitable outcome of over three decades of liberal indoctrination in the schools and in the media, and short of a complete societal meltdown, won't be easily reversed --just look at the UK.

You are right and I agree with you. The Liberal society is trying to cultivate this kind of a situation. Now comes the question: what to do about it. I see confrontation with a group of teens as a no win situation. To me, it is no different than me trying to take on 5 well trained attackers all armed with combat level rifles with my handgun. I'm not going to win. The best that I can hope for is not to lose too badly (by taking at least a couple of them with me.)

I'll crusade with the best of them but I want a better chance of producing a good result than this situation appears to offer. Faced with an unavoidable situation like the marine was, I'll do what I have to do. What I've been trying to point out that the situation is, in part, avoidable. If I don't put myself and my wife in a situation where the conflict is likely, I'm not going to have to deal with it. My going to jail because I shot a teen in a mob does not, in my opinion, keep the trend from turning our country into an extension of Kalifornia.

I'm open to suggestions. What course of action do you recommend?

[baldeagle]

I'm open to suggestions. What course of action do you recommend?

The culture has to change. Nothing else will fix the problem. For far too long some of those who know what's right have ceded the playing field to the Marxists who want to change the country. (Certainly not the Charles Cotton's of our country, but far too many.) They have heard and read and discussed things but merely shook their heads in disgust and went about living their lives. If we want to save this country, we can no longer do that. We must all push for change and not back down. Otherwise we are doomed.

[chasfm11]

I'm open to suggestions. What course of action do you recommend?

The culture has to change. Nothing else will fix the problem. For far too long some of those who know what's right have ceded the playing field to the Marxists who want to change the country. (Certainly not the Charles Cotton's of our country, but far too many.) They have heard and read and discussed things but merely shook their heads in disgust and went about living their lives. If we want to save this country, we can no longer do that. We must all push for change and not back down. Otherwise we are doomed.

We are in agreement. But that isn't the question that I asked. My position is that

a. Going to a theater that is 30.06 posted does not further the cause as you laid it out
b. getting into a confrontation in a theater with teens does nothing to help bring about the cultural change. As an ex school teacher, I firmly believe that you don't fix these kinds of problems when the kids are teenagers. You either have to address them earlier or hope that the kids pick up some sense after they pass 21.

I'm a Tea Party activist and have shown up for protests recently. I just fired off letters to my Senators this evening. I routinely write to my Congressman. I'm on several e-mail circulation groups and daily pass information about important matters to my contacts.

None of that, however, is going to do anything directly about the subject in this thread. I'm still open to suggestions about that. I carry at the theater. I will do what I need to do to defend myself and my family. I'm not, however, going to the theater to try to change society. I think it is the wrong venue for that.

[DONT TREAD ON ME]

Video of interview with the wife.

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Interesting. According to the reporter the teens backed off when a man helping the couple "flashed a gun".

NO WAY!?!?!?!? I don't believe it we all know that crowds don't disperse when a gun is involved.

[VMI77]

Based on other comments you've made in other threads I think you realize that this is exactly the kind of society the liberal anti-self-defense crowd is trying to cultivate. If this happened in one of our People's Republic states like Kalifornia or New Jersey, and the people attacked defended themselves, even if the truth saw the light of day, they'd be excoriated as thugs and the thugs would be lamented as victims. It might not happen that way here but the number of people who would automatically empathize with these young thugs is mind bogglingly large and growing. This attitude is no accident: it's the inevitable outcome of over three decades of liberal indoctrination in the schools and in the media, and short of a complete societal meltdown, won't be easily reversed --just look at the UK.

You are right and I agree with you. The Liberal society is trying to cultivate this kind of a situation. Now comes the question: what to do about it. I see confrontation with a group of teens as a no win situation. To me, it is no different than me trying to take on 5 well trained attackers all armed with combat level rifles with my handgun. I'm not going to win. The best that I can hope for is not to lose too badly (by taking at least a couple of them with me.)

I'll crusade with the best of them but I want a better chance of producing a good result than this situation appears to offer. Faced with an unavoidable situation like the marine was, I'll do what I have to do. What I've been trying to point out that the situation is, in part, avoidable. If I don't put myself and my wife in a situation where the conflict is likely, I'm not going to have to deal with it. My going to jail because I shot a teen in a mob does not, in my opinion, keep the trend from turning our country into an extension of Kalifornia.

I'm open to suggestions. What course of action do you recommend?

Unfortunately I don't have much in the way of answers. In the specific situation of movie theaters I recommend not going. I love movies and watch a lot of them and like seeing them on the big screen but I stopped going to movie theaters a long time ago when I made my own home theater. When I stopped going it was mostly because of all the jerks in the audience, and a high rate of bad experiences, not due to any threat of violence. There is simply no way I'd give my money to a theater attended by obvious thugs. I do boycott businesses with 30.06 signs, but I realize given our numbers that is probably not going to have much effect. However, being set upon by thugs, or just generally harassed and having an unpleasant movie experience is something that effects most everyone, not just CHL holders. But frankly, a population that allows itself to be made indentured servants to a corrupt financial system and groped as part of a phony security theater production will probably tolerate just about anything as long as the experience isn't immediately life threatening, so I'm not optimistic about the chances for positive change.

More broadly we have to eject liberals from power wherever possible, get control of our schools back and reverse the collectivist liberal indoctrination, make people accountable for their behavior at all levels of society, be they children, politicians, bankers, TSA bureaucrats, or school principals (focusing on making the leadership accountable, not the rank and file), and expose and educate as many people as possible to the concepts of individual responsibility for self-defense to reverse the current collectivist orientation. Given the fact that the bankers and politicians conspired to loot the country in the biggest theft and fraud in the history of the world and got away with it Scot free, I'm not optimistic about any political solutions. That pretty much leaves grassroots style education and outreach as our only options.

[chasfm11]

More broadly we have to eject liberals from power wherever possible, get control of our schools back and reverse the collectivist liberal indoctrination, make people accountable for their behavior at all levels of society, be they children, politicians, bankers, TSA bureaucrats, or school principals (focusing on making the leadership accountable, not the rank and file), and expose and educate as many people as possible to the concepts of individual responsibility for self-defense to reverse the current collectivist orientation. Given the fact that the bankers and politicians conspired to loot the country in the biggest theft and fraud in the history of the world and got away with it Scot free, I'm not optimistic about any political solutions. That pretty much leaves grassroots style education and outreach as our only options.

We are in violent agreement. While it isn't perfect, the Tea Party seems to offer a way to advance many of the ideas that you have outlined. I also think that we, as individuals, can do a lot within our communities. The old idea of never discussing religion and politics has never been honored on the Liberal side. I routinely trot out my pet ideas on several of the topics you listed whenever the social situation provides me an opportunity. I've found more and more people willing to listen, especially if I just ask questions and point them to sources of information. Perhaps that is as close to the grassroots education process as I can do.

Back closer to the topic, I'd still like to hear more ideas about what to do if faced with a similar situation. I like the idea of having the theater's phone number on my cell phone speed dial and think that my stepping out into the hallway to use it would preserve my anonymity while not allowing a teen gang of thugs to ruin my movie experience or opportunity. I suspect that it isn't economically feasible for the theater management to have a member of their staff in every showing in every theater but if the did some "behavior" profiling and put someone in where there were large groups of teens to proactively preempt disruptions, that might help the situation. I do recognize that management actions like that could be viewed in a negative light from several angles. Clearly, there is no easy way for the theater to address the ills of society either.